SHELLING ABATES IN BOSNIAN CAPITAL; No Progress at Peace Talks

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June 26, 1992, Page 00008 The New York Times Archives

A European Community mediator seeking to revive Yugoslav peace negotiations reported no success today after meeting separately here with top officials of Serbia, Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Lord Carrington of Britain, who undertook the community's Yugoslav peace effort last September, said his two hours of talks today with Slobodan Milosevic, the Serbian President, were "disappointing."

Lord Carrington said he had pressed Mr. Milosevic to take "specific and substantial steps" toward conciliation with Bosnia and Herzegovina. He said Mr. Milosevic maintained in the talks that as President of Serbia, he lacked the authority to recognize Bosnia and Herzegovina, whose status must be determined by the leaders of federal Yugoslavia. After the independence of four of the old Yugoslavia's republics over the last year, only Serbia and Montenegro remain in the federation.

A new assembly of lawmakers from Serbia and Montenegro elected a President for Yugoslavia, Dobrica Cosic, last week. But his authority is unclear, and Mr. Milosevic still wields paramount power in the federation.

Lord Carrington also met with President Franjo Tudjman of Croatia. Mr. Tudjman denied reports that Croats under his control had entered Bosnia to form a military alliance with the Croats and Muslims who are battling Serbs there, insisting instead that they were "volunteers."

The European Community is seeking to open the way for an overall political settlement in Yugoslavia once the fighting stops. It has left questions of military intervention and economic sanctions to the United Nations.

Asked if he thought the peace conference had failed, Lord Carrington replied, "Well, I think it would be an exaggeration to say that today broke the deadlock."

Mr. Silajdzic, returning to Europe from a United Nations session, was representing the Bosnian President, Alia Izetbegovic, who is trapped in the besieged Bosnian capital.

A version of this article appears in print on June 26, 1992, on Page A00008 of the National edition with the headline: SHELLING ABATES IN BOSNIAN CAPITAL; No Progress at Peace Talks. Order Reprints|Today's Paper|Subscribe